California Assembly Passes Bill to Add Jewish as Ethnicity Option on State Forms

California's state Assembly has passed a bill that would permit residents to voluntarily identify their Jewish ancestry on state demographic forms. The legislation, which still requires a final legislative vote before reaching Governor Gavin Newsom's desk, would mandate that state agencies collecting demographic information include "Jewish" as an option for ethnicity or ancestry.

The primary objective is to provide state officials and researchers with better data on Jewish Californians, covering areas such as unemployment rates and school representation. Proponents argue this information would enable lawmakers to craft policies that more effectively address the needs of the Jewish community. David Bocarsly, CEO of the advocacy group Jewish California, framed the measure as a matter of inclusion, noting recent legislative efforts to gather more detailed data on Middle Eastern, North African, and LGBTQ+ communities.

However, the bill has drawn opposition from some quarters. Critics point to the traumatic history of the Nazi government maintaining records of Jews during the Holocaust as a reason for caution. The proposal includes a provision barring agencies from disclosing personal identifying information. Bill author Senator Henry Stern, a Jewish Democrat, argued that California's existing privacy protections are robust enough to mitigate these concerns.

Sydney Levy of Jewish Voice for Peace expressed skepticism, stating at a hearing, "When it comes to government holding lists of Jews, we do not trust your privacy guardrails." Marc Dollinger, a Jewish studies professor at San Francisco State University, referenced Jewish tradition, noting that "Jews are not supposed to be counted." He framed the issue as a question of trust regarding whether data collection will support or potentially harm the community.

Dollinger also acknowledged that categorizing Jewish identity as an ethnicity could assist the state in tracking hate crimes against Jews. Levy, who identifies as a Latino Jew, disagreed with classifying Jews as a single ethnic group, highlighting the diverse cultures and experiences of Jews of color.

Under the bill, individuals could still identify their race alongside selecting "Jewish" as their ethnicity, similar to how some people identify as Latino ethnically while describing their race separately. The legislation was amended on Friday to exempt agencies from adding the option if doing so would jeopardize federal funding.

Senator Stern, who began wearing a kippah regularly after experiencing an antisemitic remark while walking to synagogue with his daughter in October 2023, said the bill aims to create space for people to be seen. "This bill is just trying to create a little more space for those kinds of people — just let them be seen," Stern said. "I don't think it's going to be a radical transformation. I don't think it's going to change the world."